


it’s so strange (when you love someone)

by thrice



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Pining, and then mutual pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2018-11-24
Packaged: 2019-08-27 16:58:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16706371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thrice/pseuds/thrice
Summary: There’s a boy four doors down.(Or the university au where Dan meets the boy who enraptures him completely.)





	it’s so strange (when you love someone)

“Are you with anyone yet?” Dan’s mother asks.

He’s startled by her sudden question. He shakes his head _no,_ and can almost feel the pity radiating from her expression, internal tut-tutting. “Maybe one day.” Dan says, “I'm not gonna rush into anything just yet. I need time.”

“Besides,” he says, “It’s not any of your business anyway.”

And yet, she doesn't: continuing to prod and prod; the rest of the family jumping right in tune ( _But you’re 23! You haven’t dated anyone since that bothersome girl you used to like in high school!_ ) until he can't take it anymore and quickly dashes over to his room, far away from their nosiness.

He then pulls out his phone and headphones, sliding them over his ears and palming his device, closing his eyes and taking in the vocal comfort of Thom Yorke. 

** 

There's a boy four doors down.

There's a boy, and he always walks his yorkie promptly at 2:30 P.M sharp, blue eyes flashing themselves open and closed as he rubs his temples, and he’s got the kind of grin that would cause an unsuspecting pair of knees to buckle, shaking and starstruck. Two pale hands, calloused and gripping a red dog’s leash, blue ocean eyes looking at a point somewhere above him.

A big, rather _huge_ part of Dan wanted to talk to him, to muster up the courage buried under a pile of shaking nerves. To ask him. To actually do something.

And maybe he should. 

** 

(But he doesn't. Instead, he finds himself regretfully walking back inside his rundown apartment.) 

**

“You're a bit down today, aren't you?” Louise asks him, face pouring over her chai tea. 

Dan mumbles a _mhm_ in response.

She groans, rolling her eyes back. “Oh for goodness sakes, Dan, snap out of it. Just because you can't get some guy to notice you doesn't mean you should let that ruin your whole day. Here.” Louise wraps a hand around Dan’s cup and carefully slides it towards him. “Drink.” 

He stares at the slushing pattern the caffinated liquid makes when she pushed it towards him, wanting to break free of the mold, which felt a bit too much like him. He grips the drink with caution, bringing it to his lips. A plan. That's what he’ll formulate. Gather up the courage like a storm.

**

Except it's two weeks later and he's still moping. 

**

He contemplates. He paces across the wooden floorboards, back and forth like a wave. 

A sigh. _So now what do I do,_ he ends up texting Louise.

A minute passes. Raindrops on the window sill race themselves to the bottom. Soon his phone buzzes, the screen lighting up with a text back.

 _Fucking go up to him and talk,_ she responds. _Interact with him, jesus. It's not that hard._

Dan scoffs. The fuck does _she_ know? She is not aware of how fast his heart beats everytime he comes into view, an angel stepping into the light. How enamored he is by the way that lovely boy coos at his dog, scampering around his feet. How he turned into dust when they passed each other, their molecules touching for a millisecond. It doesn’t feel easy at all.

(As dramatic as all of that seemed, it's the only way he could physically describe it without leaving a single skipped heartbeat behind.)

She doesn't know a thing, and yeah, even though she’s trying to give advice, it's not really working. At all.

He stops texting her for the day. 

**

And the next. Especially when he catches Louise giving him the stink eye. 

** 

There’s a voicemail left on his phone, a sea of few. From his mother. 

“Darling,” She says with tones of guilt. He can hear a quick sigh escaping from her lips and hitting the receiver. “Darling. Call me back soon. I apologize for my behavior the other night. I just- I just- I’m sorry.” _Click._  

She’s gone.

** 

But of course he calls back. 

After a day. 

“Hello?” Dan says after he hears something in the background. “Mum? You there?” 

There’s a sigh of frustration. And then, “Okay, hold on.” and then he hears items being arranged around, clinking about, before he can hear her steady breathing return close to the phone. 

But a minute passes and neither of them can figure out what to say. It wasn’t about that situation, in fact, but more about the many that have occurred and probably will occur. How they can never know what to say. She pushes and pushes, desperately trying to carve him into a glistening trophy that she can shove around and parade to her friends. That she can feel great pride in her son and in herself when she hears praise about him (“Oh, good for him! He’s such a nice boy!”), but her daily tut-tuts and deep sighs show that he’s not what she wants. 

But he’s still her son, after all. So he swallows his sinking feeling and musters a _hello, mum, how are you,_ and breathing a sigh of relief when she responds with feigned enthusiasm.

**

It’s when he walks into the apartment building’s lobby to get mail, that he finally talks to him. He’s trying to get his own mail too, blue eyes focusing on his keys as he fumbles with them, trying to find the right key to open the mailbox.

“Uh, hello,” Dan starts, smile wavering. He makes a point to stop his hands from shaking when the boy’s focus shifts to him. “You must be new to the building.”

The boy blinks, and then smiles back at him. “That I am,” He says, and takes a step closer to Dan. “And you are?”

“Dan Howell,” Dan sticks out his hand to shake.

“Dan,” The boy repeats, and then returns the handshake. “I’m Phil Lester. It’s nice to meet some new neighbors in this building.”

“I agree,” Dan nods. “What made you move here?”

“Well, I’m going to a new university not that far off from here, and I wanted to find a closer place to stay. So here I am.” Phil explains as those blue eyes of his light up in animation. “Do you go to Manchester University too? I think I’ve seen you around somewhere.”

“I do!” Dan nods once more, and the conversation kicks off from there.

**

He finds Phil on the lawn adjacent to the campus, studying. Approaching him, he then taps his shoulder gently. Phil turns to look at him, and then removes his white earbuds. “Oh, hey, Dan. It’s nice to see you again.”

“It’s nice to see you too.” Dan admits, sitting down next to him. “Preparing for exams, I see.”

Phil tilts his laptop screen towards him. “Actually, I’m just taking a little break and listening to some music,” and points to the digital album cover. “Muse are one of my favorites.”

He’s kind, attractive, and now he likes _Muse?_ Can this guy get _any_ better? Dan grins as he points at the cover too. “They’re one of my favorites. Actually, they’re my literal favorite.” He draws back his finger. “It’s so cool to find someone who likes them just as much as I do.”

Phil beams. “Maybe we can get together sometime and listen.” He starts to scroll through YouTube comments on the video.

 _Score._ Dan’s grin grew wider. “Maybe we should.”

They stared at each other for a second before turning away.

”How about next Sunday?” Dan offers, finally. “I’m free then.”

”Sure,” Phil says. They agree to meet him at a coffee place nearby, already starting to look forward to it. He finally let go of his nerves and talked, just like Louise said.

She’s be pretty proud.

**

She was proud.

As he recounted the details of their encounter, Louise squealed at every one in glee. “See, Dan? It’s not that hard. You just had to talk to him. Simple.”

“And I did.” Dan smiled. “Simple.”  
  
“So a coffee shop, huh?” Louise wiggled her eyebrows. “Is it this one, or another one? And you’re just gonna sit together and chat?”

”He should be coming in any minute now.” Dan explained. “And I don’t want you to embarrass me, so you better leave before he comes here.”

” _Embarass_ you?” Louise said. “Why would you say that? I would nev-“

But she never got to finish her statement because with his steady walk and nervous smile strolled in Phil Lester. He beamed up at Dan before taking a seat nearby.

Louise looked at the both of them, who were so enraptured with each other, but so unsure of this situation, that they didn’t notice Louise giving Dan an teasing look before exiting the cafe with her purse in hand.

”So,” Dan said.

”So,” Phil said. He pulled out his laptop from his laptop sleeve and plugged in his earbuds to the headphone jack, and then holding out an earbud, offering it for Dan to share with a smile. “Let’s talk Muse.”

Dan grabbed the earbud from him and placed it in his ear, praying to God above that he would never see his giddy expression, a rosy blush tinting his cheeks. But what he didn’t see was the beginnings of a flush on Phil’s cheeks too, as he watched Dan review the group’s discography, waving his arms around. A parallel feeling, gone unnoticed. But both could agree that it was a good day, the best.

They would walk home that day with a bounce in their step and goofy, sweet smiles on their faces.

 


End file.
